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by Verelia



Category: RWBY
Genre: Bumbleby - Freeform, F/F, I promise, I'll add more tags later, Mature bc violence but just descriptions of canon violence, kinda angst, will be happy tho
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-02-20
Updated: 2016-04-16
Packaged: 2018-05-22 01:08:29
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 3,253
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6065149
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Verelia/pseuds/Verelia
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Blake and Yang's relationship is constantly tested, especially during the Vytal Festival and it's gory aftermath.  Here is Blake's point of view of some of those key events during the Festival, as well as what happens after it.  [[Spoilers for the finale/all of volume 3.  takes place during and after volume 3]]</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

The crowd roared at what had been perhaps the most exciting fight of the tournament so far. Few in the audience knew of Yang’s semblance, so her scathing comeback and subsequent victory was met with great surprise.

Blake wasn't surprised, exactly - she knew Yang had it in her to win. Still, her heart was pounding, she was grinning from ear to ear, and she called Yang’s name even as the crowd drowned out her voice.   
Suddenly, her heart raced for an entirely different reason.

At first she thought it was some sort of delusion. She was overcome with a paralyzing sense of dread all the same. It couldn't be right. Yang would never-

_But neither would he._ Or so she had thought.

Ember Celica met Mercury’s leg with a sickening crack. Blake flinched at the sound that could only have been a bone snapping. She knew how hard Yang could hit, and with his aura utterly depleted…

As Mercury screamed, Blake had to steady herself on the railing in front of her, struggling to swallow the bile in her throat. No matter how many times she blinked, the same nauseating clip was being shown on every screen. By the time the Atlesian guards surrounded Yang, people all across Remnant had made their judgments. Blake, however, could hardly form coherent thoughts. 

She knew one thing only, and hated herself for it:

All she wanted to do was run.


	2. Chapter 2

Painful memories that she had long since buried resurfaced. How many innocents had she watched Adam maim or kill? He offered excuses that became less and less plausible, and became more and more frightening each time she protested. It took a long while for her to admit it to herself, but finally she realized that their agenda - no, his agenda - was not worth the mindless slaughter, regardless of what Adam said. Nothing could justify it.

This was different. Yang had no reason to do something like that. She had never been so cruel before.

Blake’s mind raced as she tried in vain to make sense of the situation. There were plenty of people on the way to the dorms, and they all seemed to have different opinions. Ruby and Weiss seemed to agree that it must have been adrenaline, that Yang wasn't herself. Blake wanted to believe that, more than anything. She wanted to forget about this entirely.

After Adam, it seemed foolish and naive to trust anyone. He told her in anger once that no one else would love her as he did, or even bother with her at all. Those words had haunted her for a long time, until she had teammates and a partner who showed constantly how much they truly cared for her. She trusted them… and more than anyone, she trusted Yang.

When Blake had been at her breaking point, Yang noticed. Not only that, but she helped. Where Adam had pushed her limits without a second thought, Yang pleaded with her to put herself first. One told her what love was, the other showed her. They were so, so, different.  
It was beyond disturbing, then, when Yang caused in her the same fear that Adam had.

Blake tried to clear her thoughts as they rounded the corner to their dorm, focusing on Weiss and Ruby’s backs rather than the Atlesian soldiers stationed outside the door. The sight that greeted them in their room was entirely unfamiliar.

Yang was hunched over on her bed, staring into nothing. If she noticed the rest of her team entering, she showed little sign of it. There was a long moment of silence before she raised her head. Before anyone could speak, Ironwood burst through the door.

Listening to his rant proved impossible, and Blake found herself staring absently into space as Yang had been. Only when her name was spoken did she look up.  
Her heart was pounding by the time she finished explaining about Adam. She hadn't shared that story with anyone, but in the end, it was clearly worth the pain of telling it. Tears streamed down her face, but it was clear that Yang understood Blake’s hesitation.

When Yang looked her in the eyes, Blake believed her, and felt the tension and stress from earlier wash away. She even found herself smiling. As she left with Ruby and Weiss, there was more she wanted to say - there always was. But as usual, she left without a word.

What could the harm be? They'd have all the time in the world to talk later, after all.


	3. Chapter 3

“I’m… not…  _ running. _ ”

Gambol Shroud met Wilt with a flurry of sparks, but where Adam held his blade steady, Blake’s arms trembled as she strained to match his strength.  

“You will,” he growled, kicking her to the ground.  This wasn’t the first time Adam had struck her.  She doubted it would be the last.  “But  _ not _ before you suffer for your betrayal, my love.”

At one time, she might have felt guilt at such a statement.  The word “darling” on his lips would have made her heart flutter, would have made her question everything: he loved her, how could she do this to him?  Much as she tried to forget, she could recall her time before Beacon with painful clarity.   _ “Don’t you love  _ me _ , Blake?” _  Her answer was always a tearful affirmation paired with apologies for ever making it seem otherwise.  He had been her mentor, but wanted something more.  She assumed the feeling was mutual, assumed she knew what love meant, how it felt, but it only took a few months at Beacon for her to realize just how wrong she had been.

Now, she knew Adam Taurus for the monster he was.

“This could have been  _ our _ day!  Can’t you see that?!”

All Blake could see were the flames engulfing the only place in which she had truly felt safe.  Safe, because Adam would never be there.  If only that had been true.

“I never wanted  _ this _ !  I wanted equality.  I wanted peace!”  There was a time when she thought he wanted those things, too.  He had tried to convince her even as her doubt formed a rift between them.  She ran when his acts became unbearable, when his words could no longer sway her.  But every cruelty she witnessed in the past paled in comparison to the bloodbath at Beacon.  These thoughts, of her school burning, of the innocents being slaughtered, turned her previous fear to rage, and she mustered up the strength to sit up and aim her gun.  

Blake pulled the trigger on impulse, and cursed herself for it as he blocked with his sword.  She fired only twice, but his reflexes were quick, and she could see his katana glowing as it was hit.  There wasn’t a scratch on him.  Instead, she was only strengthening the power of his semblance.

“What you  _ want _ ,” Adam shouted, “is  _ impossible! _ ”  He returned Wilt to its sheath and swung it at her head, forcing her to the ground once more.  Blake couldn’t help but cry out in pain - her aura was rapidly draining, weakened already by the fights she’d won to get this far.  With great effort, she propped herself up on one arm, determined to face him, to defy him to the last moment.

“But I understand,” he said, slowly making his way towards her, “because all I want is  _ you _ , Blake.”

She didn’t know whether to feel sickened or angered.  There were so many things she wanted to say, none of them kind, but his statement didn’t deserve to be graced with an answer.  Gambol Shroud could damn well speak for her.  But as soon as she lifted it, she was kicked to the floor again, her gun cast out of reach.

“And as I set out upon this world and deliver the justice mankind so greatly deserves,” he growled, kneeling down as Blake’s expression turned from anger to fear, “I will make it my mission to destroy  _ everything  _ you love.”

“Blake!   _ Blake! _  Where are you?!”

_ No. _  She heard a voice and almost hoped it wasn’t real.  There was no voice she wanted to hear more, and none that she wanted to hear less.  Yang’s presence always calmed her, assured her that everything would be alright; now, as Adam looked toward the broken window, where Yang carved a path through Grimm to find her partner, Blake wished the voice had belonged to anyone else.  

“...starting with her.”  Dread and fear filled her as she realized Adam would make good on his promise.  

As her former partner buried his sword in her stomach, Blake bit her lip, clenched her fists, wrenched her eyes shut; she tried as hard as she could not to cry out.   _ He can have me, _ she thought frantically.   _ He can't have her.   _ She failed, and when she looked over in horror, it was clear that her agonizing scream had gotten Yang’s attention.  When he wrenched the blade out, she couldn’t help but gasp - her quickly draining aura could only dull the pain so much.    

“ _ Get away from her! _ ”

In all their time spent together, Blake had never seen Yang so angry.  She thought back to Mountain Glenn, when Yang said she didn’t have anything that drove her.  Maybe she just hadn’t realized what it was yet.

“No…  _ please… _ ”  

But it was too late.  She watched Adam sheath his sword and activate his semblance.  

“ _ Now!”  _ Yang’s rage-filled scream sounded more like a roar, and for a split second, Blake swore she saw tears in her partner’s eyes, now red with fury.  If the blow had struck true, Adam would have been sent reeling, but that was not to be.  

Instead, the world turned crimson.  Yang’s limp body crashed to the ground, her aura working to heal a wound that could never be truly mended, and Blake could hear Ember Celica hitting the floor as Yang’s right arm landed separately from the rest of her.  

As Adam approached Yang, he flicked his sword, trying to rid it of her blood.  Maiming her wasn't enough - perhaps he was angered by the fact that Yang had plainly shown she loved Blake more than he ever could.  He intended to kill the unconscious girl in front of him, all to torment someone he claimed to have loved.

Blake would sooner die than allow that.  She drew strength from her anger, from her fear, and threw herself in front of Yang.  

Blake Belladonna had never before understood love as clearly as in that instant.

“Why must you hurt me, Blake?”  

She hardly heard Adam, and hardly cared to.  

Blake lifted up Yang’s limp form, and with the last of her strength, did what she did best.  

Everything after that was a blur.  Searing pain slowed every excruciating step, tears clouded her vision, and Yang’s body grew heavier and heavier with each passing second.  Blake tried as best she could not to look at the bleeding stump where Yang’s arm should have been.  She didn’t want to think about the damage she'd caused, about how Ruby would react, about how Yang would be when she woke up.   _ If  _ she woke up.  

_ This is my fault. _

As soon as she staggered into view of the other students, Yang was lifted from her arms.  Her vision began to blacken, but still she clung onto Yang’s shirt, mumbling apologies that she’d never hear.  She felt someone’s arms under her shoulders just before everything went black.  

 

Blake woke to the sound of panicked students, likely discussing what their next move would be.  She could pick out Weiss’s voice, at least.  Despite the agony she still suffered, despite the guilt she felt, her teammate’s presence put a smile on Blake’s face.  She and Yang were safe, at least for the moment.  When she finally opened her eyes and sought out her partner, though, the smile vanished.  

_ At least they put us next to each other.   _

Blake strained to get a better view of Yang, holding herself up with one arm, and as soon as she saw the bloody, bandaged stump, she slumped back down, paying no mind to the pain it caused her.  Tears clouded her vision, but she couldn't take her eyes off her partner.  

Suddenly, she froze.  It wasn't just Weiss that she heard.  

“What is it?”  

She cast a glance at Ruby, before turning to Yang again and holding her hand.  

“I'm sorry,” she said, her tears flowing freely now, “I'm so sorry.”  Because of her, Yang threw herself into danger and paid dearly for it; she apologized for her failure to protect the one she loved.   But she also lamented what she was about to do.  It would ultimately be to protect Yang, and everyone else she cared for, but it would hurt them, too.  

Yang would never hear Blake’s apologies, and Yang would never hear Blake’s goodbye.

_ Maybe it's better this way.  If she hates me, maybe this will cause her less pain. _

“Yang…”  Ruby had lost so much in one day; Blake cursed herself for adding to it.

Soon enough, their young leader’s unbroken resolve was back in her voice, though Blake was slipping in and out of consciousness, and couldn't quite register what was being said.   She kept her grip on Yang’s hand, though, desperately hoping that she would wake up and stop her from what she intended to do.

Blake waited until the very last second to run, but Yang never woke, and her tearful goodbye, her whispered “I love you,” was heard by no one.


	4. Chapter 4

“It's pretty late… You alright?  Here - come inside, at least, it's freezing.”

She was a stranger to him, yet the man in front of her showed nothing but concern.  Unaccustomed as she was to such kindness, Blake didn't have the energy for suspicion.  She was shivering under the thin cloak she’d managed to pry off of one of the many, many victims of Beacon, and she had grown worryingly thin in the past few months.  At one time - in another life, it seemed - she would have used this to her advantage.  She would have preyed upon humans foolish enough to be kind, under the direction of a man who had not the slightest idea what kindness - or  _ love _ \- was.  

“I'm sorry to bother you, uh…”   _ No.  I can't back down now.  I have to do this.   _ “Are you Taiyang Xiao Long?”

“Yes.”  His answer was barely audible as the wind howled outside.  After wrestling the door shut, he looked her up and down, frowning all the while.  “Have a seat near the fire, I'll get you some tea and a blanket.  I'm sure it can wait until--”

“I'm Blake Belladonna,” she said hurriedly.  “Could I… speak to Ruby?  It'll only take a moment, then I'll be on my way.”

Taiyang sighed heavily.  There were dark circles under his eyes, and his expression was one of utter defeat.  

“You've just missed her - she left a few days ago with some of your friends.”  

The only answer Blake had to that was a look of concern and horror.  She had run from her team with the small comfort in mind that Ruby would always be there for her sister.   _ Just like I'd always be there for her,  _ she thought bitterly.

“Don't worry, though,” Taiyang said with a smirk that didn't quite reach his eyes, “she left me a note saying she'll be okay.”

This man tried to joke around even as his fifteen-year-old daughter left home in the middle of a war.  Blake could see where Yang got it from.  

“Maybe it would be best if I--”

“It would be best if you stayed, I think.”  Taiyang crossed his arms, with the worried look back on his face.  It didn't seem like he'd take no for an answer.  “The weather’s only getting worse, and from what Ruby told me, I got the impression that you don't have anywhere else to go, with Beacon destroyed.  Please, Blake,” he said, his voice softening, “at least stay tonight.”  

Blake could only nod.  She didn't believe that she deserved his compassion, but neither could she bring herself to leave.  After taking shelter in the ruined classrooms and empty corridors of Beacon, and the ruined streets and abandoned buildings of Vale, this was the best place she’d seen in months.

Taiyang, apparently satisfied, nodded in return.  “I'll be right back,” he said, disappearing down the hall.

As soon as she was sure she wouldn't be heard, Blake followed, using her ears to guide her.  In their time together, she had grown  _ very _ familiar with the sound of Yang snoring. During each cold night spent in Vale, the sounds she heard were far less endearing and far more disturbing, grim reminders of what - of whom - she had lost.

She opened the door to Yang’s room silently, not daring to get too close.  Despite the darkness, she saw every detail, and promptly wished she hadn't.  Yang, who usually slept like a rock, was tossing and turning, her bedsheets tangled, with beads of sweat dripping down her face.  She wasn't snoring so much as she was panting.  

Blake wanted to wake her up.  To tell her that everything would be alright, that she wouldn't let anything happen to her, that she wouldn't leave her side again.  But what value could there be in promises that were already broken?

With shaking hands, she untied the little black bow that had helped her hide for so long, and placed it beside the wilting sunflowers on Yang’s nightstand.  Blake silently left after one last look at Yang’s right arm - or the stump where it  _ should  _ have been.

Taiyang made no comment about her changed appearance - maybe he didn't even notice.  The world itself seemed to slow as she settled in front of a warm fireplace, wrapped in soft, colorful blankets, with a mug of steaming tea in her hands.  It took her a moment to register that Taiyang was speaking to her.

“...been hard on her.  I know she'll get through this, and she'll be stronger for it… But until then…”  He trailed off, looking to Blake as if she held the solution to all of this.

“She needs people who won’t abandon her like I did.”

As distracted as she was, Blake didn't hear the quiet patter of uneven footsteps down the hall.  Yang was sure she was dreaming, but there was a familiar bow in her left hand, held by trembling, white knuckles.  She clung to it for fear that it might slip away at any moment… Not unlike its owner had.  

Yang was too tired to be angry.  If it was a dream, it was a happy one, for once.  Whenever she saw Blake's face in dreams now, it was contorted in pain as that  _ bastard _ sunk his sword into her stomach, over and over again.  Each time Yang got close to him, searing pain on her right side made the world blurry, and she fell before him each time without landing a single blow.  Each time she awoke, her voice was hoarse from screaming.

But, no matter how hard Yang blinked, the image of Blake and her father remained.

“She needs her friends, her team,” he said gently.  After a moment of hesitation, he looked away from her.  “And her partner.”

“I'm sorry,” Blake sputtered, fighting back tears, “I shouldn't have run, I shouldn't have left Yang, I--”

“You,” Taiyang said, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder, “are the only who's come back for her.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took so long, everyone. School has been busy and I've had to write some short stories along with other assignments in between, and spent a lot of energy trying to come up with ideas for those. Also had some writer's block, but who doesn't? Anyway, i hope you're all enjoying this as much as I am!

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! I was so emotionally wrecked by bumbleby after watching the finale, so here's the result of that. My first RWBY fic, so that's exciting. More chapters to come!


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